Posts Tagged ‘economy’

I’ll spare you the policy wonk fun from Heritage, but check out this quote from some post-baseball season “light reading” (fully story here):

The country’s current left-wing government, led first by Peronist Party leader Néstor Kirchner (presi­dent from 2003 to 2007) and now by his wife, Presi­dent Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, has used revenues from commodities exports to finance the same sort of populist policies that have kept General Juan Peron and his political progeny in power in Argentina more or less continuously since the 1940s with a simple but economically destructive formula: wasteful welfare state handouts, a swollen bureau­cracy to redistribute wealth, and powerful closed-shop trade unions protected from foreign competi­tion; all generously lubricated with corruption.

See any parallels to today’s political discussion in the United States?

Words come to mind when I read these articles- jerk, arrogant, buffoon- but none really are accurate enough. We are in an age where truth does not matter, experience is a liability, and your presentation is king.

Asked during an interview on CBS’ “Face the Nation” whether McCain deserved credit for bringing lawmakers together, Obama said “no.”

“Here are the facts: For two weeks I was on the phone everyday with Secretary Paulson and the congressional leaders making sure that the principles that have been ultimately adopted were incorporated in the bill,” Obama said.

Well praise Barack from whom all blessings flow! Please allow me to get on my knees, kiss my Che shirt, hug my hammer and sickle, and genuflect over my Obama bumper sticker. He has saved the day with his intense phone calling! He must be more amazing on the phone than in person.

So what exactly did John McCain do? Well, at a minimum, he sacrificed his time and showed up. I’m sure there were political calculations which came with that decision. However, McCain didn’t have to prep for the debate like Obama because he had nothing to memorize at the last minute. No cramming needed.

Is there one cogent explanation of Obama’s ideas or what exactly he contributed to this process? Please, just communicating is not substantive- how about an idea? “Helping main street” you say? Give me a break. Was he the ONE who had that idea? I’m sure he’ll take the credit for anything good and blame the bad on the Republicans. More Barry bipartisan.

I love this quote from the article:

Obama also said the next president should work to overhaul the regulatory structure of Wall Street, though he offered no specifics.

How about a pony for every little girl in America? Why don’t we just buy everyone a house, give them “free” health care, “free” public transportation, “free” college, “free” “free” free”!!!

Any specifics about that pony? Uhhh, no, not at this time. Wait until next January and bring a coat.

As time goes on it appears that Obama will be president without facing a single issue with any depth- no more than a reflecting pool. And I bet he loves the reflection.

By the way- does the Honda factory in Marysville, Ohio need some of the taxpayer’s money? No, they don’t need it. THIRTEEN THOUSAND AMERICANS make it the old-fashioned way in Marysville. They build cars people buy.

Oh, yea, and what about that new Kia plant in Georgia? Over five thousand jobs to Georgia. Americans making cars! WOW! Taxpayers don’t need to bailout Kia.

And finally, my car. A wonderful Hyundai Santa Fe buit in Montgomery, Alabama. I love it! Great price, wonderful features, much better than any subsidized car made in Detroit. And I helped the new South create jobs!

And finally, let’s not forget a trip up I-85 from Atlanta to Charlotte, NC. What do you pass in South Carolina? A BMW factory! Wow!

Temporary workers, some of whom joined the plant to replace workers who left in a big wave a few years ago, aren’t so lucky.

“A lot of the temporary workers are — I don’t want to say upset — but they’re done with it,” said Sam Alston, a temporary worker who installs second- and third-row seats in the vans. “They’re not giving us severance packages or a chance to transfer. It was rough being a contract worker. We didn’t get any benefits. No vacation and our pay was less than the actual GM workers.”

Alston came in two years ago making $18 an hour and now makes $25 an hour. A full-time GM worker doing the same work earns about $30 an hour, Alston said. Many workers are just counting down the hours.

The talking heads are doing major lip moving on the economy. What has caused all of these huge institutions to fail? Why now? Was it the big Wall Street fat cats looking to gold-plate yet another bathroom fixture? Just one more Ferrari and I’ll be happy?

Did you know the bank went out of business after falling 1 billion in debt?

And this from the same article:

As an owner and board chair of Superior, Penny Pritzker also was named in a RICO class action suit on behalf of the more than 1,400 depositors at Superior, who initially lost over $50 million of their life savings.

Remember, this is the woman who is Obama’s national finance chairwoman!

Mr. President, this week Fannie Mae’s regulator reported that the company’s quarterly reports of profit growth over the past few years were “illusions deliberately and systematically created” by the company’s senior management, which resulted in a $10.6 billion accounting scandal.

Here are a few links to articles which are tying bad policies back to Obama:

McCain gets emotional at the mention of military families needing food stamps or veterans lacking health care. The outrage comes from inside: McCain’s severe war injuries prevent him from combing his hair, typing on a keyboard, or tying his shoes. Friends marvel at McCain’s encyclopedic knowledge of sports. He’s an avid fan – Ted Williams is his hero – but he can’t raise his arm above his shoulder to throw a baseball.

After Vietnam, McCain had Ann Lawrence, a physical therapist, help him regain flexibility in his leg, which had been frozen in an extended position by a shattered knee. It was the only way he could hope to resume his career as a Navy flier, but Lawrence said the treatment, taken twice a week for six months, was excruciatingly painful.

Ouch! Maybe Biden should ask McCain to type out an email like he asked Missouri State Senator Chuck Graham to stand up (Graham is in a wheelchair.)

We should all send a email to the Obama campaign titled “God love ya, what am I talking about!” on behalf of an extraordinary man who has fought so hard for this wonderful country.

In certain ways, McCain was a natural Web candidate. Chairman of the Senate Telecommunications Subcommittee and regarded as the U.S. Senate’s savviest technologist, McCain is an inveterate devotee of email. His nightly ritual is to read his email together with his wife, Cindy. The injuries he incurred as a Vietnam POW make it painful for McCain to type. Instead, he dictates responses that his wife types on a laptop. “She’s a whiz on the keyboard, and I’m so laborious,” McCain admits.

UPDATE:

How can you out-research the ‘well-run’ Obama campaign?

– Google “McCain computer email”

– Click on “News” at the top of the page

– Click on the “2000” link on the left

– Insightful article, second one on the list, for Obama’s web geniuses from Forbes.com

You might also notice there are other articles about McCain’s online fundraising during the 2000 campaign. By the way, for the benefit of anyone supporting Obama, this is the second time McCain has run for president.